Only You
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Close The Door
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It Don’t Hurt Now
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When Somebody Loves You Back
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Album: Life Is A Song Worth Singing (1978)

This is part two of a two-part tribute to Teddy Pendergrass. part one

Teddy Pendergrass’s Life Is A Song Worth Singing is a fine example of how Philly soul adapted to the disco/funk movement while remaining true to the diverse vocal personalities, complex orchestral arrangements, and accessible melodies that defined this popular regional subgenre. Teddy was (arguably) the biggest star of the storied Philadelphia International label, with a voice that can blow you away or woo you to bed — sometimes within the same song.

The first featured cut is “Only You,” which I can’t listen to without remembering Eddie Murphy’s classic bit from Delirious:

“Close The Door” may be my all-time favorite Teddy track, an unequivocal 5-star classic and Teddy’s only single to crack the Top 40 pop charts. Laid-back but with a driving backbeat, this is a groove you can put on at the end of a night of dancing for one last feel-good jam.

Your hip black aunt would have been mighty pissed at me if I didn’t include “It Don’t Hurt Now,” which was one of those Teddy tracks that had women throwing their panties onto the stage. What did Teddy do with all those panties?

The final selection is the uplifting stepper “When Somebody Loves You Back,” arranged by the legendary Thom Bell (check the “Flight of the Bumblebee” strings). This is typical of the songwriting style pioneered by (Kenny) Gamble & (Leon) Huff — catchy and straightforward with a touch of melancholy.

Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes
Don’t Leave Me This Way (Dim’s Re-Edit)
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Album: After The Playboy Mansion (Compilation, 2002)

Teddy Pendergrass
You Can’t Hide From Yourself
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Album: Teddy Pendergrass (1977)

This is part one of a two-part tribute to Teddy Pendergrass. part two

This week’s passing of soul legend Teddy Pendergrass hurts a little bit. Few can claim as much authority on the mic as Teddy. During his prime, even his ballads were turned up to 11.

Of course, I dove into the collection on a hunt for all things Teddy. Embarrassed to say, I only had a greatest hits collection and Life Is a Song Worth Singing, Teddy’s second LP. After listening to Life Is a Song Worth Singing from end to end, I decided that it is worthy of LP Classics designation; a full post is forthcoming.

I did have a few Teddy tracks on some compilations, plus Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes’ Wake Up Everybody, their landmark 1975 LP with Teddy on lead vocals. That record included a bunch of great tracks, chief among them the rousing 5-star classic "Don’t Leave Me This Way." Even though the LP version is a scorcher, I decided to digitize a 2002 “re-edit” from Dimitri From Paris that modestly improves upon the track’s mixability.

The other track I selected is “You Can’t Hide From Yourself,” from Teddy’s 1977 eponymous solo debut LP. As the title might indicate, this became an anthem in gay discos. Philly Soul architects Gamble & Huff threw it down yet again, combining a thomping beat, blaring Philly horns, and a positive message with one of Teddy’s most urgent vocals.

Some biographical notes upon Teddy’s passing:

• Read his NY Times obituary or his Wikipedia page.
• Everything changed for Teddy after a 1982 car accident made him a paraplegic. Though he rarely performed live after the accident, he did keep making commercially successful records. But he mostly dedicated his post-accident life towards advocating for the rights of those with spinal cord injuries.
• Teddy got his start as a replacement drummer for Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes. Harold quickly figured out that Teddy could also sing, and reassigned him to lead singer. Get a taste of Teddy’s percussion skills in the clip below (he picks up the drumsticks starting at 3:40):

• The ladies loved them some Teddy, and he occasionally put on shows where only women were allowed in the audience as he passed around lollipops shaped like himself (R. Kelly, take note). In researching Teddy’s life, I was surprised to learn there may have been another side to his image as the consummate ladies’ man. Because I want this space to value musical drama over the real-life variety, I won’t go into the details here, but a quick search about the nature of Teddy’s car accident will clue you in.